Flue-cleaner.



' No'. 767,133. PATENTED AUG. 9, 1904.

I 3'. B. BRITTAIN.

PLUS GLEANER. APPLICATION FILED 1 110.9. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

r Z ubenfoz UNlTE STATES Patented August 9, 1904;

PATENT OFFICE.

FLUEMGLEANEHn SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 767,133, dated August 9, 1904.

Application filed December 8, 1903. Serial No. 134,302. (No model.)

To all whmn it may concern.-

Be it known that l, JOHN B. BRITTAIN, a citi- Zen of the United States, residing at Pensacola, in the county of Escambia and State of Florida, have invented new and useful Improvements in Flue-Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a flue-cleaner adapted especially for use in removing sediment, soot, and the like from boiler-fines, and the object of the same is to provide a simple and effective device of this class having an organization of elements unitedly contributing to remove sediment or other material Within the tubes and embodying certain adjustable features to maintain the blades in close operative contact with the inner portion of a flue and also permit the cleaner to be used in flues of varying diameters.

The invention consists in the construction and arrangement of parts which will be more fully hereinafter set forth.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a cleaner embodying the features of the invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through parts of the same.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts in the views.

The numeral 1 designates ashaft or shank which is adapted to have other rods coupled thereto to facilitate the movement of the cleaner through flues. ()n the front end of the shaft or shank 1 a head 2 is secured and has concave faces 3, gradually tapering to a front point 4 and forming cutting edges 5, the rear extremity 6 of the head secured to the shaft or shank being red need and having the front terminals of resilient blades 7 attached thereto. The blades 7 flare outwardly in a rearward direction and terminate in opposite inwardly-turned spiral members 8, the said members being disposed in reverse directions, and attached thereto are resilient shanks 9, consisting of flat metal strips which flare toward the front extremity of the cleaner and have their rear ends freelyslidable through openings 10 at diametrical points in a disk head 11. The disk head 11 has a central opening 12 to adapt the same to be adjusted longitudinally over the shaft or shank 1, and held in close contact with the front face thereof is a washer 13, also having openings 14 therein, coinciding with the openings 10, the said washer acting as an auxiliary means to effect the adjustment of the flat shanks 9 of the blades. The rear extremity 15 of the shaft or shank 1 is screw-threaded and engaged by an adjusting-nut 16. Between thenut and the disk head 11 a supporting-bell 17 is interposed and in the rear reduced extremity thereof an opening 18 is formed, having a smooth wall and a greater diameter than the screwthreaded extremity 15 of the shaft 1, so that the said supporting-bell may be freely adj ustcd longitudinally over said screw-threaded extremity. An annular flange 19 is formed in the rear extremity of the bell around the opening 18 to provide an annular seat 20 for the re ception of the rear ends of the fiat shanks 9. The front edges 21 of the blade firmly engage the rear face of the disk head 11. By adjusting the nut 16 toward the head 2 at the front end of the shaft 1 the blades 7 and their spiral members 8 will be drawn inwardly toward the shaft 1 by reason of the fact that the head 11 will draw inwardly on the forwardly-flared shanks 9. This adjustmentwill be variable between the normal outward extent of the blades in relation to the shaft and the minimum inward adjustment thereof, and when the latter adjustment has been obtained the ends of the shank 9, projecting through the head 11, will be terminally held in the annular seat 20 of the supporting-bell 17. It will be understood that if the nut 16 is moved or shifted rearwardly over the screw-threaded extremity 15 the blades 7 will be permitted to extend out from the shaft 1 a distance proportionate to the rearward adjustment, and under such circumstances the flat shanks 9 will be loosely held in the head, but exert a pressure on the said head and washer sul'licient to hold the supporting-bell 17 back against the nut. The

blades 7 are also free to contract and expand within the limits of the varying adjustments when inserted in a flue to bring the operating edges of the said blades in close contact with the inner surface of the flue.

The head 2 forms what may be termed an auger-head and is particularly effective in loosening and dislodging sediment or other material that may congregate in a flue to a considerable extent and which might resist the free insertion of the cleaner, the latter being rotated in this instance to cause the cutting edges 5 to perform their function sufficiently to permit the blades 7 to complete the cleaning operation. When the cleaner is forced through a tube, the loosened sediment or other material will be pushed forward by the disk head 11 and forced out the rear end of the tube.

All the parts of the improved device will be preferably constructed of suitable metal, and the blades 7 may be removed and replaced by others of a like construction when wear or breakage renders such substitution necessary. It will also be understood that changes in the proportions and dimensions may be resorted to Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new is- 1. In a flue-cleaner, the combination of a shaft having a penetrating head on the front end thereof and a rear screw-threaded extremity, a disk head movably disposed on theshaft in advance of the screw-threaded extremity of the latter and having slots extending therethrough adjacent to the shaft, a supportingbell adjustable on the screw-threaded extremity of the shaft and having its flared edge bearing against the said disk head, the bell being formed with an annular seat therein near its rear end, and flaring blades attached at their front extremities to the head and provided with rearwardly-projecting shanks loosely passing through the slots in the head and terminally held in the seat of the bell, the said bell-seat preventing the rear terminals of the shanks of the blades from contacting with the screwthreaded extremity of the shaft.

2. In a flue-cleaner, the combination of a shaft having an auger-head on the front end thereof, resilient blades surrounding the shaft and having their front terminals connected to said head, shanks projecting rearwardly from the blades, the said shanks flaring forwardly, a disk head with a washer against the front side thereof through which the rear extremities of the shanks loosely extend, the said disk head and washer being free to slide on the shank, and a supporting-bell adjustable on the shaft and held in engagement with the rear face of the disk head, said bell being provided with an inner seat at its rear extremity to receive the ends of the shanks.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN B. BRITTAIN. lVitnesses:

B. MONROE, R. WILSON. 

